Gadget Review: Pocket Monkey Multi-Tool

I grew up watching the inventiveness and man-made magic of MacGyver. Each episode posed a new quandary to solve and he was never without his trusted handful of tools with which he could build pretty much anything using what was nearby. Most of the time he had duct tape, a pen, paper clip, possibly a rubber band and a never-failing Swiss Army knife. As a kid I knew I would be able to handle whatever life threw my way as long as I had a good multi-tool in my pocket, and it just got easier than ever to carry one around.

The Pocket Monkey by Zootility Tools is a stainless steel multi-tool with a dozen different functions, yet it weighs only one ounce and is thin enough to slide into a normal credit card pouch. It’s already TSA compliant. When you add that it has a small monkey head, I think you’ve got a winner.

The functions include bottle opener, flat-head screwdriver, Phillips screwdriver, micro screwdriver, cell phone stand, door latch slip, hex wrenches, letter opener, orange and banana peeler, ruler, and straight edge. Over the time I’ve tested the tool I’ve already fallen in love with the orange peeler. It does a great job and keeps my fingernails from getting that awful citrus coating that looks like I’ve been scraping asbestos off the walls. I can’t say I’ve used the banana peeling function because, let’s face it, there are already two easy ways to do that and people who make a mess of that need more than a multi-tool to solve their problems.

The screwdrivers are great, especially the micro version which works nicely on the sunglasses I’ve tested it against. Another nice twist is that they have labeled each function with a fairly recognizable icon so you can remember what everything does. The only drawback I’ve found is the letter opener, which isn’t sharp enough to cut open letters rather than tear them, but that could have been a safety decision; sharper, and they would have had to create a guard to prevent people slicing themselves up.

At only $12, the Pocket Monkey is not only a viable, useful and creative tool, but a nifty conversation starter as well. Just try whipping it out next time someone grabs an orange to eat and see how impressed people get.